I've come to a conclusion regarding Y&R - MAB doesn't actually stand for Maria Arena Bell, but rather, Missing A Brain!
For a show to have fallen so far from grace because one head writer and her writing team of monkeys are more concerned with shock and awe rather than decent, well-structured and believable storylines is beyond a slap on the face for the late and great Bill Bell. I sat back the other day in front of my computer, ready to watch the latest offering in the scenes of Sharon and Nick, Lily and Cane, Jill and Colin, Kay, Villy, etc... and I realised that I no longer have the same excitement to watch this show as I once did. In fact, I expect very little in this show to make me want to come back, that I'm reduced to watching clips on YouTube (thank you dear lord for allowing that site to be invented) simply because I don't want these pathetic writers to get my ratings and thus think they are doing a stand up job. That idea couldn't be father from the truth!
So where do we begin? How about the failed redemption storyline of Adam Newman and the simultaneous destruction of veteran character Sharon. You know, I've been scratching my head at this storyline for months now, wondering what in fact the writers were up to? Of course we had Sharon Newman Collins Abbott Newman (who hasn't been married to this broad at some point?) batting her eyelashes at Adam while vehemently verbally lashing out at anyone who cannot see her point of view regarding him! But exactly how are we supposed to believe this flighty woman (and that's a nice adjective to describe her these days) is actually still in contact with her ability for rational thought? I understand there are some Shadam/Adam fans out there, but I often wonder how many of them were fans of Sharon before? Time and time again I see these "supporters" rooting for this new and improved, stronger version of Sharon whom they didn't give the time of day to before this particular storyline. They say she was weak, unlikeable and they didn't care for her.
This brings me to a rather interesting conclusion then - if you didn't invest in the character of Sharon Newman before, and if you didn't want to watch her before nor care for her before - then how would you know if this is the real Sharon? Point blank, this is NOT the real Sharon that fans have watched and loved for over a decade. In fact, I would go as far as to say that the writers are completely ignoring history and re-writing this character so that they can prop Adam Newman. Unfortunately for them, long-standing viewers (and heck, even those who have tuned in for the past three years and seen the way Sharon has been regarding Faith PRIOR to discovering her evil ex-husband stole her) have minds that function at a normal capacity. That means, we do not suffer from Stockholm Syndrome nor short term memory loss! We cannot sympathise with a man such as Adam because of the atrocious things he has done. CRIMES he has committed. We cannot simply forget that this man STOLE Sharon's child, led her to believe she was dead, and all for the purpose of saving his own ass, just because you happen to prop and pimp him and shove him down our throats like he is the second coming.
Adam shows no real redemption for me. He has apologised to Sharon and Sharon only, and this is simply because as of right now, she is the weakest-willed character on the show. Ironic, considering the writers themselves have stated that the Adam-Sharon love-affair is more about the evolution of Sharon. What evolution? To evolve, one must progress, not regress. So this in itself, is an epic fail. Furthermore, Sharon is the ONLY one to come to the conclusion that Adam is redeemed. People are quick to jump in that Jack is now helping Adam, but let me make one thing very clear - Jack is not helping ADAM, Jack is helping JACK! And he is yet another collateral damage character when it comes to propping Adam Newman. Never in a million years would Jack betray Ashley like this. It's downright disgusting. Adam has shown no remorse to Ashley what so ever, and she in my opinion, was the most victimised by Adam. To this day, she still has no idea where her baby is, and Junior isn't talking. And why? Because the acts he committed against her are unspeakable.
Where is his apology to Paul for what he did to patty? Where is his apology to Nick for stealing his daughter and sending him to prison for his murder when clearly he was alive and kicking? Where is his apology to Hightower's family for causing the death of a man and leaving a boy father-less (sorry, waving a check that your wife gave you isn't an apology in my eyes). I'm sorry, but this man shows ZERO remorse. And heaven forbid I ask where his apology to Victor is.
Do I like Victor Newman? Not particularly. But apparently because King Newman gets away with things I'm supposed to give Adam a free ride. On the contrary, I understand where Victor is coming from. He welcomed Adam into his home and company, and Adam spat in his face. He went into business with Victor's sworn enemy jack and together they forged a diary to get Victor thrown in prison for a crime he didn't commit (where are the Adam fans screaming THAT'S NOT FAIR like they did with Adam???), and then Adam gaslighted Victor's wife causing her to miscarry. he then allowed papa to believe that his grandchild was really his daughter and then had to suffer watching her being taken away from him and learning in fact that his own daughter had died and was now somewhere he will never know (close to home though, since Adam disposed of her in the fireplace!). Do I like Victor? No. Do I want him to kick Adam's ass to hell and back again several times while I watch Sharon realise what a sociopath she is living with? ABSOLUTELY!
For me, the only person being redeemed her is Nick Newman. This is all about protecting faith. Now I know the Shadam lovers like to jump up and down squealing that this is only about Sharon, but we all know it isn't. We all like to paint Nick as a buffoon caveman, and in the past I think the title was fitting. The way he flip-flopped back and forth between Sharon and Phyllis had me disliking him for years. But I have to admit, this storyline has me screaming from the rooftops TEAM NICK BABY!
Not once has he asked Sharon to come back to him. Every time they discuss what she is doing or he discusses it with someone else, he states he wants to protect his daughter. He wants faith to be safe. He is completely within his rights to distrust Adam after what he has suffered because of him. He stole his child and he's supposed to trust him because his crazy ex-wife says so? had Nick decided to let her come back, Sharon would have been back with him, and Faith and Noah. her words - "I wanna be with you, and Faith and Noah." It was only when Nick rejected her that she suddenly decided Adam was the one. Since then, Nick has not wanted her back.
People say that he said if it wasn't for Adam and New Orleans, he and Sharon would be married right now and that somehow proves this is all about Sharon. Uhm, hello? So the man is not allowed to be upset? He's not allowed to be hurt and angry that the woman who said she wanted to marry him has cheated on him with not only the man who stole his child but who also happens to be his brother. Yes, big bad Nick for being upset about that, who does he think he is? I'm sorry, but I am completely on Nick's side and I am glad he was awarded full custody. If it's about the murder charges, I don't care because that stupid judge (who has no business being a mother in any way, shape or form in future might I add) decided to once again neglect Adam's crimes and allow him to be around the child he stole. So if this is what I have to accept in order for Sharon and Adam's grubby paws to be off Faith, then I accept whole-heartedly! Nick Newman, you keep fighting the good fight and protect your child!
What else? The Cane and Lily storyline should be done and over by now! This is a prime example of how a storyline can drag on for so long that not only do people HATE the character (I fear my fellow Aussie Cane is the front runner for hate in this story), but they are so over it by the end they don't care how it finishes, it just needs to get off their screen! It would be nice if they could find some way of keeping the character of Colin around because I happen to like him and think he could be useful in many ways, but this storyline needs to be done. end it, move on and give us some peace!
Victoria and Billy - I'm starting to wear a little thin on this one too. maybe because of the predictability of it all. maybe because I feel like Billy has become more of a man-purse for Victoria than the spunky, loving guy that brought her out of her shell and made her more likable for me. It's hard liking Victoria right now because I feel her lawsuit against Victor is just bratty, but my dislike for her was usually cancelled out by Billy. But now with the whole baby-buying storyline, it's just falling a little flat for me and they've lost some of their spark. Sad because, in reality, I loved them to begin with. But now Billy and Victoria seem stale in some places, because it's all about the baby and has been for months. We barely got sexy scenes with them trying to make babies (yet endured Shadam in NO - go figure?) And we all know that Daniel will come into the mix now that he has quickly discovered baby Lucy is his. This all screams predictable and is moving at warp speed (as opposed to our slow as snails stories of Shadam and Lane).
And then we get to Victor Newman. EB is amazing. I love this actor and everything he brings to this dying show. But it seems more these days he acts with facial expressions than actual dialog (think Joey Tribbiani and his "sniff the fart" acting from Friends!) Do I care that damsel Sharon's pleas are falling on deaf ears in this case - not really. I'm thoroughly enjoying her suffering because in my opinion she deserves it. But it would be nice if Victor got some back for what he's done. Nikki with Deacon seems more about her rebounding Victor than actually liking Deacon for me (since she ran over to Victor's house, got upset then bedded Deacon). Victoria and Billy care more about Lucy than the lawsuit. Abby seems to have left the building and will no doubt return only to be dragged into a baby storyline that pits her boyfriend against her own sister. The shag-fest with Diane seems to be more about sticking it to Jack than actual feelings for Diane, and when his son gets dragged into it I think the allure of Victor's wealth will probably tip Diane in his direction rather than Nicks, (although the whole storyline actually gives me the creeps).
Add to the mix Phyllis walking around hating Sharon one day and then supporting her the next, this whole show seems to be struggling to keep up with it's own erraticness. My suggestion would be for the writers to sit down, watch Y&R from years before and find the core values that made this show unmistakably number one for so long. Go back to business dealings (enough with this lame hedge fund), go back to real romance instead of shock and awe storylines and please, for the love of all things entertainment, enough with the pimping at nausea of Adam Newman. Give us back our characters we know and love (where the hell is Paul these days?) and make this show what it's supposed to be - an ensemble.
Otherwise writers, your "kool aid" will have the same effect as the real drink itself... it will end up as human waste in the toilet, ready to be flushed!
What do you think?
